Some Verizon Fios TV subscribers found themselves “shut out” of the Nationals new broadcast channel on Opening Day, according to Nusbaum & Drellich of THE ATHLETIC. Some subscribers said that they were told by Verizon customer service representatives that “watching the game would require a more expensive package than they needed previously.” Some were “told, incorrectly, that the new channel was not available on any package.” That confusion “lingered into the evening,” when it remained unclear whether fans hoping to watch Nationals broadcasts this season “would need to pay more.” MLB is newly overseeing the Nats’ television efforts Nationals.TV. None of the parties addressed questions about whether the cable provider is “offering Nats broadcasts in a different tier of service than it had in the past when the games aired” on MASN (THE ATHLETIC, 3/27). Verizon issued a statement on the situation that reads, “With Verizon Fios, Nationals.TV is currently available on our Most TV, Ultimate TV, and Mundo Total plans. It’s coming soon to Your Fios TV. It’s not available on Local TV Plans. While we aim for consistency, the move from MASN to a team-specific feed has resulted in some changes to our tiers. Plans may require an account review or an adjustment to align with the new MLB-provided feed” (SBJ).
EXPANDING THE REACH: The Braves and Comcast have reached a distribution agreement to bring the team’s new owned and operated network, BravesVision, to Comcast customers. BravesVision will be available on Xfinity TV beginning Friday as the Braves take on the Royals at Truist Park for their Opening Day. Braves games will be available for Xfinity TV customers in Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and western North Carolina (Braves).
MORE ACCESS: FuboTV and Spectrum SportsNet LA on Thursday reached an agreement that brings the Dodgers to Fubo’s sports-first live TV streaming platform. Fubo will stream SportsNet LA’s coverage of every available Dodgers game, including pre- and postgame shows and exclusive content. Viewers will also be able to watch the network’s signature series, “Backstage: Dodgers,” on the service. At launch, SportsNet LA will be available to subscribers of the FuboTV base plan in the SportsNet LA footprint (Fubo).